Special Issue "Monogastric Animal Nutrition and Metabolism"
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A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (29 February 2012)
Special Issue Editor
Guest Editor
Prof. Dr. Geert Janssens
Department of Animal Nutrition, Genetics, Breeding and Ethology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Heidestraat 19, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium
Website: http://www.ugent.be/en/@@people?ugentid=801000923577
E-Mail: geert.janssens@ugent.be
Interests: production animals, pets and wildlife nutrition; feed intake regulation; energy homeostasis; nutritional modulation; intestinal microbiota and host metabolism; microminerals metabolism
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The emerging global climate change reduces the reliability of food resources at local markets. Solutions are needed to avoid further competition between human and animal nutrition. Especially in species with low fermentative capacity, the large overlap in diet ingredients with human nutrition needs to be revisited. Although not all monogastric species are low in fermentative capacity, they are typically envisaged as most competing with human food resources.
Whether used for husbandry, as companion or in conservation programs, nutritionally related metabolic disorders are widespread in captive monogastric species, including—but not exclusively—obesity, inflammatory problems and mineral deficiencies. It implies that more efforts are needed to identify the determinants of nutritional requirements (i.e., not only nutrient requirements) in particular species.
Manuscripts submitted to this special issue in Animals should thus provide insight in the way that optimal nutrition maintains desired metabolic functioning, or how malnutrition leads to metabolic disturbances. Studies on one particular species are welcome, but comparative studies are encouraged.
Prof. Dr. Geert Janssens
Guest Editor
Submission
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. Papers will be published continuously (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are refereed through a peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed Open Access quarterly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 300 CHF (Swiss Francs).
English correction and/or formatting fees of 250 CHF (Swiss Francs) will be charged in certain cases for those articles accepted for publication that require extensive additional formatting and/or English corrections.
Keywords
- monogastric animals
- metabolic disorders
- nutritional physiology
- comparative nutrition
- nutrient metabolism
Published Papers (7 papers)
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Received: 21 November 2011; in revised form: 26 December 2011 / Accepted: 4 January 2012 / Published: 13 January 2012
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Abstract: A 51-day feeding trial was carried out to determine the effects of various dietary levels of brewer’s yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, in the growth performance, body composition and nutrient utilization in Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, juveniles. Fish (7.6 ± 0.3 g) were stocked into eighteen 1,000-L tanks (100 fish per tank; n = 3) and fed to apparent satiation six isonitrogenous (27% crude protein) and isoenergetic (19 kJ/g) diets, formulated to contain different dried yeast levels (0%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 30% or 40% diet) in substitution to fishmeal. Body weight tripled at the end of the feeding trial for fish fed up to 20% dietary yeast incorporation. Daily growth coefficient (DGC, % body weight/day) decreased with increasing dietary yeast level (P < 0.0001). Voluntary feed intake (VFI, %BW/day) did not vary significantly with increasing yeast level. Fish fed 40% yeast showed significant reduction in protein efficiency rate, protein retention and nitrogen gain. Increasing levels of dietary yeast did not significantly affect protein or lipid digestibility. Dietary dried yeast was seemingly palatable to tilapia juveniles and was suitable up to 15% inclusion to promote growth and efficient diet utilization, without affecting body composition.
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Received: 16 January 2012; in revised form: 13 February 2012 / Accepted: 20 February 2012 / Published: 22 February 2012
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Abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of various raw materials (spirulina, curcuma, tomato pomace, false flax, linseed, chia, perilla seeds) as suitable polyunsaturated fatty acid n-3 (n-3 PUFA) sources, on the lipid traits in the longissimus dorsi muscle and perirenal fat of growing rabbits. The fatty acid (FA) analyses of the diets, carried out by gas chromatography, differed over a wide range on the basis of the highly varied ingredients in 27 experimental formulations. Among the 29 identified FAs, three from feeds were catabolized in the rabbits, five were de novo synthesized and stored chiefly in the muscle. It was possible to linearly characterize the incorporation from the feed to the muscle of 16 FAs. This study has confirmed that the dietary inclusion of various raw materials could be considered as a way of enriching the n-3 PUFA of rabbit meat. A proposal for the prediction of n-3 PUFA from dietary α-linolenic acid (C18:3 n-3) and a panel of another 10 FAs has been made for intramuscular fat (R2 = 0.94) and perirenal fat (R2 = 0.96).
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Received: 4 January 2012; in revised form: 17 February 2012 / Accepted: 20 February 2012 / Published: 22 February 2012
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Abstract: Four experimental diets for newly weaned pigs were formulated: (1) low valine and low tryptophan; (2) low valine and high tryptophan; (3) high valine and low tryptophan and (4) high valine and high tryptophan. Dietary standardized ileal digestible (SID) lysine content was 1.06 g/kg. The SID valine to SID lysine ratio was 0.58 and 0.67 for the low and high valine diets, respectively, and SID tryptophan to SID lysine ratios were 0.19 and 0.22 for the low and high tryptophan diets, respectively. In total, 64 pens of 6 pigs (3 barrows and 3 gilts) were divided over the four experimental treatments. No interaction between dietary supply of valine and tryptophan was observed (P > 0.1 for all parameters). Increasing the dietary valine content increased the daily feed intake, daily gain and gain:feed (P < 0.001 for all three parameters). Increasing the dietary tryptophan content improved gain:feed during the first 2 weeks (P < 0.05) and overall (P < 0.05). Valine supply had a greater effect on performance results than tryptophan supply. It may thus be beneficial to provide a diet with an optimal dietary concentration of valine even if other amino acids are at suboptimal dietary levels.
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Received: 6 March 2012; in revised form: 2 April 2012 / Accepted: 6 April 2012 / Published: 16 April 2012
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Abstract: Though horses synthesize ascorbic acid in their liver in amounts that meet their needs under normal circumstances, prolonged stress results in low plasma concentrations due to enhanced utilization and renal excretion and can reduce immune function. It was hypothesized that plasma ascorbic acid could be maintained in weanling horses by oral supplementation following prolonged transportation. Weanlings were supplemented with no ascorbic acid (Tx 0: n = 4), 5 grams ascorbic acid twice daily for 5 days (Tx 1: n = 4) or for 10 days (Tx 2: n = 4) following >50 hours of transportation. Supplementation caused slight (P < 0.2) increases in plasma ascorbic acid concentrations. Both supplemented groups had decreased (P < 0.05) plasma concentrations for 1 to 3 weeks following cessation of supplementation, possibly due to increased renal excretion or suppressed hepatic synthesis. Supplementation of ascorbic acid following prolonged stress will increase plasma concentrations, but prolonged supplementation should be avoided.
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Received: 29 February 2012; in revised form: 16 April 2012 / Accepted: 26 April 2012 / Published: 2 May 2012
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Abstract: Skatole is a tryptophan (TRP) metabolite with fecal odor. Together with the testicular steroid androstenone it is regarded as a main determinant of boar taint, even if elevated concentrations of skatole occur occasionally in gilts and barrows. Skatole concentrations in adipose tissue result from a complex process, which includes the availability of TRP and the presence of specialized bacteria in the gut in need of TRP for energy production, as well as absorption, transport and accumulation of skatole in adipose tissue. Several steps of this process are influenced by diet and specific feed compounds. In the present paper the current knowledge about physiological mechanisms of skatole dynamics is summarized. Additionally mechanisms are discussed, by which effective feeding strategies and feed additives exert their influence in the prevention of high skatole concentrations in adipose pig tissue. It was concluded that the most effective measures are those which influence several steps of skatole formation. Despite the numerous studies carried out in the field of skatole physiology, interesting aspects still need clarification, such as the effect of adipose tissue turnover. Reliable control of skatole accretion in fat of boars is one of the main prerequisites for pork production with entire males.
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Received: 1 March 2012; in revised form: 16 April 2012 / Accepted: 26 April 2012 / Published: 2 May 2012
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Abstract: Understanding the mechanisms involved in the development of insulin resistance in horses should enable development of effective treatment and prevention strategies. Current knowledge of these mechanisms is based upon research in obese humans and rodents, in which there is evidence that the increased production of pro-inflammatory cytokines by adipose tissue negatively influences insulin signaling in insulin-responsive tissues. In horses, plasma concentrations of the cytokine, tumor necrosis factor-α, have been positively correlated with body fatness and insulin resistance, leading to the hypothesis that inflammation may reduce insulin sensitivity in horses. However, little evidence has documented a tissue site of production and a direct link between inflammation and induction of insulin resistance has not been established. Several mechanisms are reviewed in this article, including the potential for macrophage infiltration, hyperinsulinemia, hypoxia, and lipopolysaccharide to increase pro-inflammatory cytokine production by adipose tissue of obese horses. Clearly defining the role of cytokines in reduced insulin sensitivity of horses will be a very important step in determining how obesity and insulin resistance are related.
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Received: 1 March 2012; in revised form: 1 May 2012 / Accepted: 10 May 2012 / Published: 23 May 2012
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Abstract: Mannan oligosaccharides (MOSs) are often referred to as one of the potential alternatives for antimicrobial growth promoters. The aim of the paper is to provide a review of mannan oligosaccharide products in relation to their growth promoting effect and mode of action based on the latest publications. We discuss the dietary impact of MOSs on (1) microbial changes, (2) morphological changes of gut tissue and digestibility of nutrients, and (3) immune response of pigs after weaning. Dietary MOSs maintain the intestinal integrity and the digestive and absorptive function of the gut in the post-weaning period. Recent results suggest that MOS enhances the disease resistance in swine by promoting antigen presentation facilitating thereby the shift from an innate to an adaptive immune response. Accordingly, dietary MOS supplementation has a potential growth promoting effect in pigs kept in a poor hygienic environment, while the positive effect of MOS is not observed in healthy pig herds with high hygienic standards that are able to maintain a high growth rate after weaning.
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Planned Papers
The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these
manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers
submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.
Last update: 23 December 2011
